Your lips are probably the most underprivileged part of your body. It has maximum exposure from the sun, wind, chillness, and other irritants, but it doesn’t have an oil gland which could help it keep it in moist, nor does it have melanin to protect itself from sunlight and heat. If there is one part in your body that can become dry and cracked pretty easily it is your lips. You need to provide your lips with some extra care it needs in order to make it more kissable.
Why Chapped lips?
There are a handful of reasons as to why you are having chapped lips right now. Some of the common reasons include sunburn, dehydration, allergies, fever, winter, and licking and picking your lips way too often. Chapped lips can feel itchy, irritating, and painful at times.
Protect your lips with Balms
- Bag Balm: This balm is widely available in most pharmacies, it has two main ingredients namely lanolin and petrolatum (also found in petroleum jelly). This balm is commonly used by dairy farmers on their cows’ udders to keep it soft and comfortable to handle. No wonder it will also keep your lips moist and soft. Lather some over your lips before going to sleep at night.
- Burt’s Beeswax Lip Balm: It contains all the ingredients such as beeswax, coconut oil, almond oil, lanolin, peppermint oil, Vitamin-E, and comfrey extract. These ingredients will ensure your lips are soft and supple.
- Cloverine Salve: There are thousands of users of this product who swear that it works great on chapped lips. Some users even claim that it works for chapped hands. So, that’s an added benefit for dry winter seasons. If you cannot find this product in your local drug stores or pharmacies then you can order it online at www.galabs.com
- Olive oil: If you are stuck at home with no product to your rescue then you can use some olive oil over your chapped lips. It is well known to soften and moisturize the outer skin layer of your lips.
- Vitamin E: Some Doctor’s claim that fluid present inside Vitamin-E is very effective on dry lips providing instant relief. Just puncture one or two vitamin-E capsules and spread the liquid inside over your lips.
- Petroleum Jelly: This is a well known an time-tested remedy for chapped lips. Additionally, Petroleum jelly stays on your lips for a long time. Regular use of it will help your dry lips to heal faster.
- Aquaphor: If you want a product that outlasts petroleum jelly then Aquaphor is the right option for you. It stays longer than any balms mentioned in this list and like Bag balm it also contains lanolin. This cream is easily available at most drugstores. If you do not find it you can easily purchase it online as well.
Keep Yourself Hydrated
While balms and creams do its work from the outside, but the real cure should come from within. When you keep yourself properly hydrated your lips will naturally appear moist and healthy. Additionally, it supports your external efforts in a great way. Doctors recommend drinking at least 3 liters of water a day.
How to Prevent it?
- If you go out in the hot sun, way too often then you might need to look for a balm that contains sunscreen with SPF level of at least 15. Just like your skin, your lips also need protection from the hot sun to prevent it from getting chapped.
Do not that some people are allergic to lip balms that sunscreen. If your lips turn red or feel itchy after the application, then wash it off immediately
- If you are a woman then put on a dark-colored creamy lipstick from a well-recognized brand to protect it from the sun and cold winds outdoors.
- Dry winds inside your home could very well be the culprit behind your chapped lips. Ensure you are keeping the humidifier running in your home while you are indoors.
- Doctors claim that chapped lips could also be a sign of Vitamin-B deficiency. Try to eat foods that are rich in Vitamin-B such as nuts, green vegetables, whole grains, etc…
- If you have the habit of keep licking your lips then stop it immediately. Your saliva has digestive enzymes in it which has the property of drying out the outer layer of your lips pretty rapidly. Though licking your lips gives you a temporary relief it dries out very rapidly and makes your lips look drier than before.
- Before purchasing a balm for your chapped lips, check out its contents and ensure it doesn’t contain phenol or camphor. Both these compounds are antiseptic in nature and will make your lips dry.
- If you have a toddler or little kid at home suffering from this problem, then do not apply a balm with exotic flavors, as kids tend to lick it off from the lips very quickly. Instead of getting rid of the problem, it will make the condition much worse than before.
Beware of the Yeast Infections
If you have a long-lasting chapped lips problem, you might probably have painful corners in your mouth that appear dry and cracked. This happens when your skin is infected with yeast. To get rid of the infection you can make use of an anti-fungal cream such as clotrimazole, which is easily available in most drug stores and supermarkets. Lather some of this cream over the infected region twice or thrice a day till you find relief.
When to Seek Doctor’s help?
Cracked lips are quite common during the winter season, when you have a fever, and when you do not hydrate yourself properly. You should be able to tackle them with the remedies mentioned above. But your condition might need an attention of a dermatologist when the problem doesn’t disappear after two to three weeks of its occurrence when your lips appear red and feel itchy. If you encounter this problem multiple times in a year then it could be due to yeast infection. Allergic reactions towards products like toothpaste, lipstick, and certain creams can also trigger this problem. So get it checked by a professional Doctor to find out the real reason.